One of the challenges with using WLAN technology, for example for Internet of Things (IoT) communications, is balancing network connectivity with battery conservation. If a WLAN radio is always on for a wireless station (STA), then there is low latency in exchanging data, but power consumption can be significant. This may be problematic for battery powered wireless stations.
Conversely, the radio can be turned off for a duty cycle to reduce power consumption. However, the longer the radio is off, the higher the latency. In particular, in communications with longer duty cycles, often the wireless station does not communicate with an access point (AP) for an extended period, making it impossible to transmit data from the AP to the wireless station. This may be problematic for wireless stations that need data with low latency.
Further, with the radio being off for a long period, associations between the STA and AP may be lost, and the overhead of establishing or maintaining network connectivity with that access point could be a key contributor to power consumption.